Home buyers from all walks of life are drawn to Centurion’s newest and established suburbs of Amberfield and Raslouw respectively because of their accessible property prices and value for money homes.
Amberfield, which is still a fairly new suburb in Centurion, is very popular with buyers, particularly first-time purchasers, young professionals and families with entry level prices of around R800 000 for one bedroom and one bathroom apartments.
“Both suburbs are ideally located close to main roads and highways, with a number of amenities including shopping centers, schools, medical facilities, places of worship and entertainment,” says Evi Huni, Pam Golding Properties area specialist.
New sectional title developments in Amberfield
Huni explains that Amberfield, which is still fairly new, has seen a number of new sectional title developments in the last few years including those located right across from the Mall @ Reds. Here there is a mixture of sectional title and freehold homes. Sectional title units are accessibly priced between R800 000 and R1.5 million.
“Prices are very attractive for buyers as is security and close proximity to good schools for those with children,” says Huni.
He notes that according to Lightstone data, of the total housing units in Amberfield, 79.9% are sectional title properties – with a sizeable number located in estates. More than two thirds (68.4%) of all homes in Amberfield are located in security estates.
As for the profile of buyers, data reveals that 51% of recent buyers (between August 2017 and July 2018) were young adults, suggesting that the sectional title units in the area are attracting a large number of first-time buyers starting out. A further 32% (aged between 36 -49) also represented 53% of stable owners.
In addition, the statistics reveal that sectional title prices have shown stronger growth than freehold homes over the past five and 10 years – increasing by 37.7% and 50.3% respectively with the median price of a sectional title at R1.04 million and R2.15 million for freehold homes.
Located to the West of Centurion, Amberfield is bounded by the N14 to the South, Heuweloord and the Rietspruit to the West, Rooihuiskraal Road (M37) to the East and the Mall@Reds to the North.
Amberfield has a mixture of property types including freehold homes, townhouses, duets, apartments, vacant land, clusters, guesthouses, secure estates and new developments, including Amberfield City, which will have 4 000 homes on completion and a world-class private school.
Sought-after estates include Amberfield Crest Estate, Amberfield Glen Estate, Amberfield Heights Estate, Amberfield Manor Estate, Amberfield Ridge Estate and Amberfield Valley Estate. At Amberfield Ridge Estate and Amberfield Valley Estate, buyers had the opportunity to buy vacant land and build their build homes – the latter being the most recent (10 to 15 years old). A number of homes are fairly new and very modern, making them very appealing.
Homes in these estates are priced from R1.9 million and ranging up to R3.4 million. What does one get for R1.9 million and R3.4 million? A lot of extras which come as standard packages, for example, minimum of three bedrooms with main en-suite, walk-in dressing rooms, private pet-friendly gardens, electric lock-up garages and state-of-the-art security with 24hour guards on patrol.
A stable market in Raslouw
According to Lightstone, 63.1% of homes in Raslouw are sectional title units, with nearly a third of the 300 freehold units located in estates. Furthermore, 52% of owners have owned their homes for 11 or more years – suggesting a fairly stable housing market. Nearly half of recent sellers had owned for less than five years – suggesting that buyers in the area could be seeing their homes in Raslouw estates as their first foothold on the property ladder.
The median price of sectional title homes is R962 000 with prices having grown +39.4% over the last five years, according to Lightstone data.
The median price of a freehold home in an estate in Raslouw is R2.575 million and R2.48 million in Raslouw Glen estate. In Raslouw Lifestyle Estate, the median price of freehold homes is R3.52 million and R1.89 million for sectional title units.
Huni says Raslouw, situated to the North West of Centurion, is one of the more well-entrenched areas in Centurion with established gardens, large stands and an abundance of trees. The suburb is bordered by the Wierda Road (M10) to the North, Philirene Road (Heuwelsig Estate) to the West, Gouws Avenue (Wierda Park) to the East and Ruimte Avenue (R114) to the South.
Raslouw offers various property types including freehold homes, townhouses, duets, vacant land and secure estates. Buyers are attracted to this suburb because of the spacious stands, style of house built, tranquil environment and the fact that there is very little building activity in the area.
“With the median price of sectional title homes priced under R1 million, the suburb attracts a number of young adults (35 or younger) and professionals as well as first-time buyers,” says Huni.
Some of the larger stands have been developed into secure estates, with the three popular estates namely Raslouw Gardens Estate, Raslouw Glen Estate and Raslouw Manor Estate. Raslouw Manor being the most sought after. Raslouw Lifestyle Estate includes Raslouw Manor, Gardens and Raslouw Glen, points out Huni. At Raslouw Glen estate, home prices are between R2.5 million and R5 million and the estate boasts amenities such as a swimming pool and children’s play area.
Huni says in addition to property types, the suburb has two popular guesthouses – Swan Lake and Swans Rest Boutique Hotel, two nurseries, public library and post office.
Living in these suburbs
Huni says Amberfield and Raslouw offer easy access to the N1 and N14 making it convenient for those commuting to Pretoria, Midrand, Kempton Park, Johannesburg, Krugersdorp, Gautrain and OR Tambo International Airport as well as Lanseria International Airport.
In addition, the Gautrain bus services run via Amberfield to the Centurion station making it very convenient for commuters.
For shopping, residents of both suburbs can go to Mall@Reds and Raslouw Lifestyle Centre, Celtis Ridge and Panorama View Centre. Schools in the area include Laerskool Wierdapark, Bakenkop Laerskool, Springvale Primary, Eldoraigne Hoërskool, Sutherland Secondary School, Centurion Christian School and Doxa Deo (South Campus). Pre-schools include Froggies, Kleuterhoekie, Ietsie Bietsie and Ietsie Bietsie Crèche (Rooihuiskraal), Pieriewierie, Kabouterland, Little Village, Bambi, Maranataland, Waterland and Klitsie.
There are a number of places of worship, while the Netcare Unitas Hospital is located about 5km away, and the following clinics are in close proximity; Wierdapark Day Clinic, Bakenkop Medical Clinic, Rooihuiskraal Provincial Clinic, Medipark Clinic, Eldoraigne Provincial Clinic, Netcare Day Hospital, Medicross Eldoraigne, Clicks Clinic in the Mall@Reds Centre and the DisChem Clinic in the Raslouw Lifestyle Centre. The nearest library is the Rooihuiskraal library in Rooihuiskraal.
Places of interest include the Wonderland Entertainment Centre, the Rooihuiskraal Historical Terrain and Animal Farm located in Rooihuiskraal Road just north of the N14. With an original farmstead dating back to the 1880s, this site was declared a national monument in 1981. For avid golfers, in close proximity is the Gardener Ross Golf & Country Estate designed and built by Ernie Els.